GL2 Power Question at DVinfo.net

Walter Scott · December 5th, 2003, 12:50 PM

I've found one thing about my new GL2 I don’t like, the power arrangement. To run the cam from AC I have to disconnect the battery and connect the power cable in its place. If I put the battery on the charger and try to power the cam at the same time the battery s not charged. Compared to my old Optura this is a pain. I note that the cam has a DC jack, but the manual has no information on it. Is there a charger I can buy that can connect to this jack, and let me run the cam and charge the battery at the same time?

Jason Casey · December 5th, 2003, 02:40 PM

I don't think I've ever seen a charger that can do that. At least not one that you can get from the maufacturer, maybe from some other third-party company.

Walter Scott · December 5th, 2003, 05:18 PM

<<<-- Originally posted by Jason Casey : I don't think I've ever seen a charger that can do that. At least not one that you can get from the maufacturer, maybe from some other third-party company. -->>>

Well, the one for my Canon Optura does. It does not have a connection for the battery, you mount the battery on the cam, plug the cam into the charger and you can power the cam & charge the battery at the same time. Oh, well!

Colin Sze · December 5th, 2003, 08:22 PM

Yes, it is kind of annoying that it does not feed in DC power to the cam while charging the battery at same time. It is a marketing orientated thing more than a technical issue to the manufacturer.
I don't think you should fiddle with that DC 5V power jack either. Even the polarity is not specified on it, and I can found nowhere in the manaul is it elucidated. My wild guess it is not for input, but an output to power up some accessories which Canon drops for whatever reason.

Walter Scott · December 5th, 2003, 08:57 PM

<<<-- Originally posted by Colin Sze : Yes, it is kind of annoying that it does not feed in DC power to the cam while charging the battery at same time. It is a marketing orientated thing more than a technical issue to the manufacturer.

yes, but why? If they sold a different charger that would do both I guess I could understand.

I don't think you should fiddle with that DC 5V power jack either.

Agreed!

Colin Sze · December 5th, 2003, 09:16 PM

When I opened the box of my XM2, I expected the same thing with the power charger like you did. It is quite natural to see a charger power up the cam and charge up a battery simultaneously as you would to a desk top charger for our cell phone.
This is not a big issue to me, though a dual purpose charger (or adapter) would better suit the application. So what ends up is that the consumer will buy more extra batteries for their cams.

Walter Scott · December 6th, 2003, 08:27 AM

<<<-- ...... So what ends up is that the consumer will buy more extra batteries for their cams. -->>>

Yep, but not from Canon! Ive had excellent results with batteries.com

Don Palomaki · December 6th, 2003, 11:05 AM

The DC connector on the GL1 (and GL2 I suspect) is used to power accessories such as certain Canon mics and RF adapters. It is not for powering the camcorder or charging batteries, and its internal wiring tends to inhibit powering other items through it.

Just a couple observations. Serious shooters will always have extra batteries, and usually extra chargers. AC power is a teather that limits mobility. A system that provides combination charging and power will be heavier and likely a bit more costly - to do this the power capacity has to be ~doubled.

Which model Optura? The PI? (The original Optura used the same charger and power cord as the XL1 - you could power the camcorder or charge a battery, but not both at the same time.)

Per the manual, with the Optura PI, charging only happens when the camera is in VCR-STOP mode, or if it has powered down after 5 minutes in pause in Camcorder mode. IMHO, more or less useless for charging and active shooting at the same time and inconvenient at best for battery charging any time - it ties up the camcorder. This is used as a cost savings many mfgrs.

Walter Scott · December 6th, 2003, 03:38 PM

<<<-- Originally posted by Don Palomaki : The DC connector on the GL1 (and GL2 I suspect) is used to power accessories such as certain Canon mics and RF adapters. It is not for powering the camcorder or charging batteries, and its internal wiring tends to inhibit powering other items through it.

Understood, OK will forget this connector!

......Just a couple observations. Serious shooters will always have extra batteries, and usually extra chargers. AC power is a teather that limits mobility. A system that provides combination charging and power will be heavier and likely a bit more costly - to do this the power capacity has to be ~doubled.

I agree about the extra batteries. I do not normally use AC power when shooting.

Which model Optura? The PI?

Yes. Currently in the shop, and the reason we decided to upgrade to the GL2.

....Per the manual, with the Optura PI, charging only happens when the camera is in VCR-STOP mode, or if it has powered down after 5 minutes in pause in Camcorder mode. IMHO, more or less useless for charging and active shooting at the same time and inconvenient at best for battery charging any time - it ties up the camcorder.

what I would do is bring the cam home after shooting, plug in the charger, fire up the cam and capture into the PC, shut the cam down, let it charge, and be ready to go again w/o a bunch of plugging/unplugging. I think when I get the PI back I'm going to continue to use it for capture, and just use the GL2 for shooting. That way all I have to do is pop the battery off the GL and stick it on the charger.

December 5th, 2003, 12:50 PM	#1
Walter Scott Regular Crew Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: Baton Rouge, LA Posts: 27	GL2 Power Question I've found one thing about my new GL2 I don’t like, the power arrangement. To run the cam from AC I have to disconnect the battery and connect the power cable in its place. If I put the battery on the charger and try to power the cam at the same time the battery s not charged. Compared to my old Optura this is a pain. I note that the cam has a DC jack, but the manual has no information on it. Is there a charger I can buy that can connect to this jack, and let me run the cam and charge the battery at the same time?

December 5th, 2003, 02:40 PM	#2
Jason Casey Regular Crew Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: Madison, WI Posts: 93	I don't think I've ever seen a charger that can do that. At least not one that you can get from the maufacturer, maybe from some other third-party company. __________________ Jason Casey www.jcmediaservices.com www.kickbacktracks.com Royalty Free Video Production Loops!

December 6th, 2003, 11:05 AM	#8
Don Palomaki Wrangler Join Date: Sep 2001 Location: Northern VA Posts: 4,488	The DC connector on the GL1 (and GL2 I suspect) is used to power accessories such as certain Canon mics and RF adapters. It is not for powering the camcorder or charging batteries, and its internal wiring tends to inhibit powering other items through it. Just a couple observations. Serious shooters will always have extra batteries, and usually extra chargers. AC power is a teather that limits mobility. A system that provides combination charging and power will be heavier and likely a bit more costly - to do this the power capacity has to be ~doubled. Which model Optura? The PI? (The original Optura used the same charger and power cord as the XL1 - you could power the camcorder or charge a battery, but not both at the same time.) Per the manual, with the Optura PI, charging only happens when the camera is in VCR-STOP mode, or if it has powered down after 5 minutes in pause in Camcorder mode. IMHO, more or less useless for charging and active shooting at the same time and inconvenient at best for battery charging any time - it ties up the camcorder. This is used as a cost savings many mfgrs. __________________ dpalomaki@dspalomaki.com

December 5th, 2003, 05:18 PM	#3
Walter Scott Regular Crew Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: Baton Rouge, LA Posts: 27	<<<-- Originally posted by Jason Casey : I don't think I've ever seen a charger that can do that. At least not one that you can get from the maufacturer, maybe from some other third-party company. -->>> Well, the one for my Canon Optura does. It does not have a connection for the battery, you mount the battery on the cam, plug the cam into the charger and you can power the cam & charge the battery at the same time. Oh, well!

December 5th, 2003, 08:22 PM	#4
Colin Sze Regular Crew Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: Hong Kong Posts: 32	Yes, it is kind of annoying that it does not feed in DC power to the cam while charging the battery at same time. It is a marketing orientated thing more than a technical issue to the manufacturer. I don't think you should fiddle with that DC 5V power jack either. Even the polarity is not specified on it, and I can found nowhere in the manaul is it elucidated. My wild guess it is not for input, but an output to power up some accessories which Canon drops for whatever reason.

December 5th, 2003, 08:57 PM	#5
Walter Scott Regular Crew Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: Baton Rouge, LA Posts: 27	<<<-- Originally posted by Colin Sze : Yes, it is kind of annoying that it does not feed in DC power to the cam while charging the battery at same time. It is a marketing orientated thing more than a technical issue to the manufacturer. yes, but why? If they sold a different charger that would do both I guess I could understand. I don't think you should fiddle with that DC 5V power jack either. Agreed!

December 5th, 2003, 09:16 PM	#6
Colin Sze Regular Crew Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: Hong Kong Posts: 32	When I opened the box of my XM2, I expected the same thing with the power charger like you did. It is quite natural to see a charger power up the cam and charge up a battery simultaneously as you would to a desk top charger for our cell phone. This is not a big issue to me, though a dual purpose charger (or adapter) would better suit the application. So what ends up is that the consumer will buy more extra batteries for their cams.

December 6th, 2003, 08:27 AM	#7
Walter Scott Regular Crew Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: Baton Rouge, LA Posts: 27	<<<-- ...... So what ends up is that the consumer will buy more extra batteries for their cams. -->>> Yep, but not from Canon! Ive had excellent results with batteries.com

December 6th, 2003, 03:38 PM	#9
Walter Scott Regular Crew Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: Baton Rouge, LA Posts: 27	<<<-- Originally posted by Don Palomaki : The DC connector on the GL1 (and GL2 I suspect) is used to power accessories such as certain Canon mics and RF adapters. It is not for powering the camcorder or charging batteries, and its internal wiring tends to inhibit powering other items through it. Understood, OK will forget this connector! ......Just a couple observations. Serious shooters will always have extra batteries, and usually extra chargers. AC power is a teather that limits mobility. A system that provides combination charging and power will be heavier and likely a bit more costly - to do this the power capacity has to be ~doubled. I agree about the extra batteries. I do not normally use AC power when shooting. Which model Optura? The PI? Yes. Currently in the shop, and the reason we decided to upgrade to the GL2. ....Per the manual, with the Optura PI, charging only happens when the camera is in VCR-STOP mode, or if it has powered down after 5 minutes in pause in Camcorder mode. IMHO, more or less useless for charging and active shooting at the same time and inconvenient at best for battery charging any time - it ties up the camcorder. what I would do is bring the cam home after shooting, plug in the charger, fire up the cam and capture into the PC, shut the cam down, let it charge, and be ready to go again w/o a bunch of plugging/unplugging. I think when I get the PI back I'm going to continue to use it for capture, and just use the GL2 for shooting. That way all I have to do is pop the battery off the GL and stick it on the charger.